Identification of the Components of Proton Pump Inhibitors and Potassium-Competitive Acid Blocker That Lead to Cardiovascular Events in Working-Age Individuals: A 12-Month Retrospective Cohort Study Using a Large Claims Database.

This study aimed to identify the components of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) or potassium-competitive acid blocker (PCAB) that lead to cardiovascular events in individuals of working age. We analyzed large claims data of individuals who were administered PPIs or PCAB. We enrolled working-age individuals administered PPI or PCAB without cardiovascular history with a 12-month screening and 12-month observation period and determined the proportion of cardiovascular events and the predictive factors of cardiovascular events in this population. Among the eligible individuals, 0.5% (456/91098) had cardiovascular events during the 12-month observation period. Predictive factors for cardiovascular events were age for +1 year (p < 0.0001), male sex (p < 0.0001), hypertension (p = 0.0056), and diabetes mellitus (p < 0.0001). The cardiovascular disease risk was higher in working-age individuals administered lansoprazole than in those administered other drugs (vs. rabeprazole; p = 0.0002, vs. omeprazole; p = 0.0046, vs. vonoprazan; p < 0.0001, and vs. esomeprazole; p < 0.0001). We identified the risk for cardiovascular events in individuals being treated with lansoprazole. Lansoprazole is known for its higher CYP2C19 inhibition activity compared with other PPIs or PCAB. A possible mechanism by which lansoprazole may lead to cardiovascular events is inhibiting the generation of epoxyeicosatrienoic acids from arachidonic acids, an intrinsic cardioprotective activator via CYP2C19 inhibition. Thus, we recommend avoiding administering lansoprazole to working-age individuals require PPIs or PCAB.

Differential effects of cold exposure on gene expression profiles in white versus brown adipose tissue.

The thermogenic function of brown adipose tissue (BAT) is known to be markedly elevated when animals are exposed to the cold, and intensive studies have been carried out to understand the molecular basis enabling effective thermogenesis in cold-exposed animals. In this study, we used microarray analysis to examine the effects of cold exposure of animals on their gene expression profiles in white adipose tissue (WAT), which seems to function as a counterpart tissue of BAT. The results indicate that the effects of cold exposure on the gene expression profiles of WAT were much more moderate than the effects on those of BAT. Possible reasons for the different responses of BAT and WAT to cold exposure are discussed.

Specific formation of trypsin-resistant micelles on a hydrophobic peptide observed with Triton X-100 but not with octylglucoside.

The manner of interaction of the coat peptide of the Pf3 phage (Pf3 peptide) with lipid bilayers has been extensively studied. Presently, we designed a derivative of the Pf3 peptide, referred to as the DDRK peptide, and subjected it to trypsin digestion to understand its physicochemical properties. In the presence of Triton X-100 used for solubilization of the peptide, digestion of DDRK with trypsin caused specific cleavage at the lysine (Lys) residue in its N-terminal region but not at other Lys residues or at the arginine residue. As the N-terminal region of the DDRK peptide is relatively hydrophilic, but its remaining region is hydrophobic, this hydrophobic region of the peptide would be expected to be coated by Triton micelles. Thus, we propose that the presence of such micelles protected against cleavage there, leading to selective cleavage by trypsin of the DDRK peptide at its hydrophilic Lys residue in the N-terminal part of the molecule. However, such a protective effect on the DDRK peptide against trypsin digestion was not observed with octylglucoside. The observed results are important for better understanding of the manner of interaction between detergents and hydrophobic peptides.

Substitution of certain amino acids in a short peptide causes a significant difference in their immunoreactivities with antibodies against different epitopes: evidence for possible folding of the peptide on a nitrocellulose or PVDF membrane.

Substitution of amino acids in a peptide caused remarkable differences in its immunoreactivities with antibodies against 3 epitopes in the immobilized peptide. The observed differences in immunoreactivities among the peptides were not due to the differences in efficiencies of their transfer onto nitrocellulose or PVDF membranes. Rather, possible folding of the peptide on the membrane was considered to be the reason for their distinct immunoreactivities with the antibodies.